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There were
reports that made nationwide news of a couple overly zealous folks, one being a
Mormon mother as I recall, who voiced their concerns over the Disney animated
movie “Frozen.” One of the concerned commentators claimed that the movie was
motivating little girls towards lesbianism. The Mormon mother wrote at least a
couple of blog posts on the issue voicing her concerns over the homosexual influences
in the movie and more. Those blog posts became all the rage with people from
both sides of the argument writing in the comments. And the fascination with the movie and soundtrack have not slacked off.

After hearing
some of the commentary, reading some of the actual articles, and receiving some
of the reports I judged that they were overreaching in their concerns. The
movie gained so much positive notoriety, it seemed that every family with young
kids had seen it, that my wife and I rented it to watch with our two year old
daughter. We thought the movie was basically innocent. To see some of the
things that the antagonists were seeing was outside of our reach. Could someone
interpret things negatively? Sure, I can understand what the conservative
critics were saying, but I think nothing comes of it, only a shrug of the
shoulders and a roll of the eyes. I suppose you can find a boogy-man under
every bed and in every closet if you really want to see it.

Yet, there
is something that I cannot shake. I do have a beef with the movie. I do have an
issue to take up with some folks. There are certain things that I do not want
my daughter thinking is acceptable no matter how cute and innocent the overall
production may be. What is my issue? Take a look at the lyrics of “Let It Go,”
the movie’s hit song. One part in particular immediately caught my attention
and raised a red flag:

“It's time
to see what I can do

To test the
limits and break through

No right, no
wrong, no rules for me I'm free!”

The song
itself has been called “musical crack” and an “addiction.” “The song sends kids
into altered states. . . . Eventually, they’re belting it out with an abandon
that borders on hysteria” (Yvonne Abraham of the Boston Globe). Now, that
sounds frightening, but it is only a problem if the lyrics are faulty. However,
my evaluation is that the lyrics are faulty and dangerous, at least the part
that I have quoted above. I do not want my daughter to think that she can “test
the limits.” That is not okay. I do not want her to think that there is “no
right, no wrong, [and] no rules.” That is poisonous. What happens when all the
laughing, smiling, and singing of lyrics like that become reality? Now, I know
that some parents will say, Oh, it’s not
a big deal. They don’t know exactly what they’re singing. They don’t really
believe what the lyrics say. Oh, really? And you know this how? And, by the
way, this is just a small issue that is part of an overwhelmingly large issue
in our culture. If we give in on small issues, it will only be a matter of time
before the snow-ball effect has caused tremendous damage that cannot be reversed.

I am not
being a weirdo, nutcase, looney conservative. It is a documented fact from
multiple sources that public schools, universities, and media of all sorts are
on a mission to do away with Christian values. While Christianity grows in
Africa and China, it is in decline in the West. And morals are only part of the
issue. There is a philosophical transition that is taking place amongst our
population. People are honestly moving into an ideology that sees no right, no
wrong, and no rules. In fact, what used to be wrong is now right, and what used
to be right is now wrong. Tolerance is no longer tolerance. Truth is no longer
truth. There is no standard. There is no certainty.

If you do not
protect your kids, no one will. If you do not teach truth to your kids, no one
will. I am not necessarily advocating that Christian people should devote all
of their time, resources, and energy to battling this issue politically. What I
am advocating is that Christian parents and grandparents teach their kids right
from wrong; that they share the Scriptures with them; and that they explain the
Gospel to them. It is okay to be different. You are called to be different–holy,
special, unique, set apart for the things of Christ. You no longer operate in
the old system in which everyone else is still enslaved. You have been
transferred into a new system. You are operating in the new creation. You are
walking in the Spirit of God. Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and
He will take care of you and your family.

*This is a compilation of notes from recent sermons with a few added remarks.

Introduction

To set the
scene for today’s sermon, we first need to review the steps of the apostle’s
argument which brings us to today’s point: do not follow the legalistic
doctrines of false teachers à do not return to slavery à you are free à do not use freedom for the flesh à through love serve one another à to love you must walk in the Spirit and thus produce the fruit of
the Spirit à a practical
example of walking in the Spirit, of bearing the fruit of the Spirit, and
lovingly serving fellow Christians is helping to restore a sinning
brother/sister.

At one time,
the great apostle Peter decided to head up to see Gentile country. A thriving
Christian community, of mostly Gentile believers, had developed in the city of
Antioch (of Syria, the third largest city of the Roman Empire at that time).
Peter apparently was spending a good bit of time up there. We are told that he
was in the habit of eating with the Gentiles. Of course, this was something new
for a Jewish man. No Jew would be caught exchanging much of anything or
communing in any way with a Gentile. They would not visit in a Gentile’s house,
much less eat with them. Not only would they not eat with Gentiles, but they
followed the OT law strictly when it came to the food regulations. They even
added many regulations to the OT law about eating.

Yet, Jesus
had personally taught the apostles that it is not what a man eats that defiles
him, but what comes out of his mouth, that is, what truly comes from his heart.
Jesus had also demonstrated that a Jewish man could commune with sinners,
Samaritans, and Gentiles. He did so on numerous occasions, eating with them,
talking with them, teaching and healing them. The Lord had even given Peter a
vision. One day while Peter was praying on a rooftop, the Lord gave him a
vision of a sheet coming down from heaven with all sorts of animals that were
unclean according to the Law, but the Lord said, “Take and eat . . . do not
call unclean what I have called clean.”

When Peter
went to visit Antioch, he was routinely going into Gentile houses, eating BBQ
with them, and having a great time of friendship. (I don’t know how you cannot
be happy while eating BBQ. Of course, I am an eastern NC, vinegar based,
chopped kind of guy, but I like it all–even if it is thick, ketchup based
sauce, or Lexington style, or SC mustard based!). When men from Jerusalem came
to Antioch, Peter changed his tune. This is what we call hypocritical.

The
hypocritical nature, the neglect of his brethren, and the overall lack of trust
in the true Gospel on the part of Peter caused the apostle Paul to confront him
to his face. There was a lot at stake, and Paul took it upon himself to do what
was right in calling out his brother. You see, we are all susceptible to
weakness and in need of correction, and we are all responsible for one another.

READ Scripture- This is the Word of God

The Fruit of the Spirit (22-24)

In contrast
to the things of the flesh, the Spirit produces all things that lead to life,
namely love. These things are not by our doing, but the work of the Holy
Spirit. There is no Law against these things. If you belong to Christ, you have
the Spirit in you, and you have crucified the flesh. The “flesh” is the old,
Adamic, sinful, unredeemed nature. We have been transferred from that state
into a new state. We now operate in the Spirit. The fruit of the Spirit is
singular which means that there is one fruit that the Spirit seeks to develop
in us. So, the fruit of the Spirit is what? Love! “All of the other virtues
listed result in some manner from love” (Longnecker). Now, there is no doubt
that love (and the rest) come by the working of the Spirit in us, but do not
discount the our individual responsibility. V25 says, “If we live in the
Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit” or as the NIV says, “let
us keep in step with the Spirit.”

Do Not Become Conceited (25-26)

In 5:26 we
get some very practical teaching on the subject. How is it that Christians are
to walk in the Spirit? Well, let’s first talk about what it does not mean. To
walk in the Spirit is not to be conceited, that is, to “have exaggerated self-conceptions”
(BDAG). A literal translation is “vainglory.” Of course, a person with that
kind of attitude is going to have trouble getting along with others. As one
commentator has said, “Now, when we are conceited, our relationships with other
people are bound to be poisoned” (Stott). This attitude causes us to either
provoke one another or envy one another.

To provoke
someone literally means to call someone forward with the sense of a challenge.
To call someone out insinuates that you are better than them, and you want to
prove it to everyone around. Some people love to be instigators. Some enjoy
dropping a bomb, as it were, and standing back to see how everyone responds.
Some are even more straightforward than that and enjoy directly challenging
someone. Christian people are not to challenge, provoke, irritate, or rival one
another. That is not operating in the Spirit. Those are things of the flesh,
the old sin-nature. The Spirit produces none of this sort. His fruit in us is
love. On the flip side, not everyone is an instigator, some folks envy others,
that is, they are jealous. You see, there are two sides to the “vainglory”
issue. In either camp, folks have the wrong view of themselves. They either
think too highly of themselves or think to lowly of themselves. Some think they
are better than others (not true) and others think that they are not as good as
others (not true). The positive command is “Walk in the Spirit” while the
negative command is “Do not have an exaggerated view of yourself.”

Restore Gently (1-5)

One very
practical part of walking in the Spirit is to look out for your brothers and
sisters. For example, if one is sinning, you should restore such a person. I
think the reasons for doing this (the
why) is obvious, but let me state a few just for discussion’s sake. We
should restore fallen brothers and sisters because:

(1) We
should pursue holiness in the body of Christ. (2) This protects the church from
temptation, sin, and apostasy. (3) This saves a brother/sister from ultimately
abandoning Christ and perishing.

What to do: Restore him/her. The word “restore” means
to put things in order, to cause something to be in a condition to
function well, to restore to a former
condition, to fix-adjust-complete-mend.
This term was used of a doctor/trainer who would set a broken bone back in its
place. It was also used of the disciples who repaired their fishing nets in
Matt 4:21/Mark 1:19. The point is that we cannot stand idly by as if a fallen
Christian has nothing to do with us. We are accountable to one another. Part of
loving one another is getting yourself dirty in service to one another. It is
too easy to say, “It does not involve me,” or “He deserves what he is getting.”
That is not Christian. We are to step in, do the hard work, and help to make
things right.

Who is to do it: Your first thought should not be to take
the issue to someone else and make it their problem or to gossip with your
friends about it. No, you are to bear the burden of your brother or sister.
Restoration is what has to happen, and you are the one responsible for doing
it. By the term “spiritual,” Paul is probably referring to those who are
walking according to the Spirit. Those mature Christians are the ones who
should restore fallen brethren. We should not just go around looking for
trouble to confront, neither should just any of us be the ones to confront
those who are sinning. But do not take that as an excuse to not confront and
restore a brother/sister. Use spiritual discernment about a situation, and do
what is right.

How it is to be done: There are two parts to this. First, it must
be done gently. Gentleness is a “fruit” of the Spirit (or in my interpretation,
an evidence of love which is the fruit of the Spirit). Second, it must be done
carefully, that is, without letting yourself become corrupted. We could say,
then, that we must restore our brethren while staying on guard ourselves. We
must guard against things from within and without. The things that come from
within are the things opposite to gentleness, namely, pride, arrogance, anger,
and conceit. The things that come from without are those things that our
brothers and sisters may have fallen into, and we may be tempted to do. So, we
must be gentle, and we must be careful, but the key is that you act! The great
reformer, Martin Luther, said of this passage, “Therefore, if you see any brother
cast down and afflicted by occasion of sin which he has committed, run to him
and, reaching out your hand, raise him up again, comfort him with sweet words,
and embrace him with motherly arms.”

This is an
appropriate example of burden-bearing: catching someone sinning and doing
something about it (ex. baby/puppy). The apostle summarizes the law of Christ
in one phrase, “Bear one another’s burdens.” That phrase teaches us a whole lot
about the Christian life that we should all hear and understand. First, we all
have burdens. Second, there are certain burdens that we cannot bear alone.
Third, we are responsible for supporting one another in burden-bearing.

Now, if you
are not willing to help others or to ask for help yourself, then you are
thinking too highly of yourself. None of us are above helping others or being
helped by others. Instead of having an exaggerated/faulty view of oneself,
everyone should test his/her own work. Here is a key point: you should not
compare your situation with the situation of another person. You can always
find someone who is doing worse than you, and then you think that you are doing
well. We should consider ourselves in comparison to God’s standards and
remember His grace. What does it mean that we should bear our own load? Is this
not in contradiction to bearing one another’s burdens? No, it does not
contradict what has previously been said. Verse five refers to you answering
for yourself on the Day of Judgment (Moo, Stott). On that Day, you will not be
compared to others but to God’s standard. Part of what will be considered is
how you related to your brethren.

Conclusion and Christian Application

For more
reading on this subject, go see what the Lord says in Matt 18:15-17.

(1) Walk in the Spirit, pursuing the
fruit that He produces and crucifying the things of the flesh such as
vainglory, provocation, and envy.

(2) Gently restore sinning believers for
the good of the brother and the church.

(3) Bear one another’s burdens even if
it gets dirty and difficult.

(4) Examine yourself and come to an
accurate self-image.

Let me leave you with a
quote from one of my favorite writers, John Stott, “Further, if we obeyed this
apostolic instruction as we should, much unkind gossip would be avoided, more
serious backsliding prevented, the good of the church advanced, and the name of
Christ glorified.”

This entire
sermon contains several points of application. We have made it to the end of
the book of Galatians, and, as usual, the apostle now gives several final
exhortations. Sometimes it feels like a letter like this ends like a machine
gun with rapid fire of things to do and not do. If you are the type that likes
to hear the dos and don’ts, here they are for you! If you think these sound
like a lot of rules, don’t be mistaken: we are not saved by keeping a list of
dos and don’ts, but there are proper responses to the Gospel and godly ways to
live in this world.

READ Scripture- This is the Word of God

Do Not Become Conceited (5:25-26)

In 5:25 the
apostle said, “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” In
5:26 we get some very practical teaching on the subject. How is it that
Christians are to walk in the Spirit? Well, let’s first talk about what it does
not mean. To walk in the Spirit is not to be conceited, that is, to “have
exaggerated self-conceptions” (BDAG). Another good translation is “vainglory.”
Of course, a person with that kind of attitude is going to have trouble getting
along with others. As one commentator has said, “Now, when we are conceited, our
relationships with other people are bound to be poisoned” (Stott). This
attitude causes us to either provoke one another or envy one another.

To provoke
someone literally means to call someone forward with the sense of a challenge.
To call someone out insinuates that you are better than them, and you want to
prove it to everyone around. Some people love to be instigators. Some love to
drop a bomb and stand back to see how everyone responds. Some are even more
straightforward than that and enjoy directly challenging someone. Christian
people are not to challenge, provoke, irritate, or rival one another. That is
not operating in the Spirit. Those are things of the flesh, the old sin-nature.
The Spirit produces none of this sort. His fruit in us is love. On the flip
side, not everyone is an instigator, some folks envy others, that is, they are
jealous. So, you see, there are two sides to the “vainglory” issue. In either
camp, folks have the wrong view of themselves. They are either thinking too
highly of themselves or thinking to lowly of themselves. Some think they are
better than others (which is not true) and others think that they are not as
good as others (which is not true). The positive command is “Walk in the
Spirit” while the negative command is “Do not have an exaggerated view of
yourself.”

Restore Gently (1-5)

One very
practical part of walking in the Spirit is to look out for your brothers and
sisters. For example, if one is sinning, you should restore such a person.

What to do: Restore him/her. The word “restore” means
to put things in order, to cause something to be in a condition to
function well, to restore to a former
condition, to fix-adjust-complete-mend.
This term was used of a doctor/trainer who would set a broken bone back in its
place. It was also used of the disciples who repaired their fishing nets in
Matt 4:21/Mark 1:19. The point is that we cannot stand idly by as if a fallen
Christian has nothing to do with us. We are accountable to one another. Part of
loving one another is getting yourself dirty in service to one another. It is
too easy to say, “It does not involve me” or “He deserves what he is getting.”
That is not Christian. We are to step in, do the hard work, and help to make
things right.

Who is to do it: Your first thought should not be to take
the issue to someone else and make it their problem or to gossip with your
friends about it. No, you are to bear the burden of your brother or sister.
Restoration is what has to happen, and you are the one responsible for doing
it. By the term “spiritual,” Paul is probably referring to those who are
walking according to the Spirit. Those mature Christians are the ones who
should restore fallen brethren. We should not just go around looking for
trouble to confront, neither should just any of us be the ones to confront
those who are sinning. But do not take that as an excuse to not confront and
restore a brother/sister. Use spiritual discernment about a situation, and do
what is right.

How it is to be done: There are two parts to this. First, it must
be done gently. Gentleness is a “fruit” of the Spirit (or in my interpretation,
an evidence of love which is the fruit of the Spirit). Second, it must be done
carefully, that is, without letting yourself become corrupted. We could say,
then, that we must restore our brethren while staying on guard ourselves. We
must guard against things from within and without. The things that come from
within are the things opposite to gentleness, namely, pride, arrogance, anger,
and conceit. The things that come from without are those things that our
brothers and sisters may have fallen into, and we may be tempted to do. So, we
must be gentle, and we must be careful, but the key is that you act! The great
reformer, Martin Luther, said of this passage, “Therefore, if you see any brother
cast down and afflicted by occasion of sin which he has committed, run to him
and, reaching out your hand, raise him up again, comfort him with sweet words,
and embrace him with motherly arms.”

This is an
appropriate example of burden-bearing: catching someone sinning and doing
something about it (ex. baby/puppy). The apostle summarizes the law of Christ
and what he has been saying here at the end of Galatians in one phrase, “Bear
one another’s burdens.” That phrase teaches us a lot about the Christian life.
First, we all have burdens. Second, there are certain burdens that we cannot
bear alone. Third, we are responsible for supporting one another in
burden-bearing.

Now, if you
are not willing to help others or to ask for help yourself, then you are
thinking too highly of yourself. None of us are above helping others or being
helped by others. Instead of having an exaggerated/faulty view of oneself,
everyone should test his/her own work. Here is a key point: you should not
compare your situation with the situation of another person. You can always
find someone who is doing worse than you, and then you think that you are doing
well. We should consider ourselves in comparison to God’s standards and
remember His grace. What does it mean that we should bear our own load? Is this
not in contradiction to bearing one another’s burdens? No, it does not
contradict what has previously been said. Verse five refers to you answering
for yourself on the Day of Judgment (Moo, Stott). On that Day, you will not be
compared to others but to God’s standard. Part of what will be considered is
how you related to your brethren.

As John
Stott has written, “Further, if we obeyed this apostolic instruction as we
should, much unkind gossip would be avoided, more serious backsliding
prevented, the good of the church advanced, and the name of Christ glorified.

Do Good to All (6-10)

The reason
for verse six is hard to discern because we do not know everything about the
Galatian situation. The overwhelming majority of interpreters believe that
verse six means that the churches are to financially support their teachers
(Moo), but why does Paul say that here? It could be that this is a stand-alone
statement that Paul wanted to make a point of here. Although, it is likely that
since, “Paul has just put a strong emphasis on individual responsibility” he
then assumed that it could, “easily be misinterpreted as a reason to hold back
from supporting those who teach” (Moo). We know that the Lord Jesus taught in
Luke 10:7 that a “laborer is worthy of his wages,” and the apostle echoed that
statement in 1 Cor 9:14 by saying, “the Lord has commanded that those who
preach the gospel should live from the gospel.” Whatever reason it may have
been for Paul to say this, verse six makes clear, as one commentator has said,
“. . . there was in the Galatia churches a recognized group of people engaged
in gospel instruction, and . . . it was incumbent on those taught by these
people to provide the instructors with financial support” (Moo). This is part
of obeying the command to bear one another’s burdens, but it is a sharing
exercise. The teacher shares spiritual/biblical things with his congregation,
and the congregation shares material things with their teacher.

Of the
sowing and reaping idea, I think we all can understand it. This is a
straightforward principle of life whether we are talking about a farmer and his
crops or a person’s spiritual life. If you plant a rose bush, you will not have
an apple tree to bloom. Likewise, if you sow to the flesh you will not bear the
fruit of the Spirit. This is what you get: if you sow to the flesh, you reap
corruption, but if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap everlasting life. Our
focus must be on the good. We must not grow weary in doing good.

A farmer
works hard, often from sun-up to sun-down. He does not see the fruit of his
labor for a long period of time, but it does eventually come. Likewise, we must
not be impatient. In due time we will reap what we have sown. We have all sorts
of opportunities of which we should take advantage to do good. Let us look for
those opportunities and act when the times comes. We should do good to all,
especially to the household of faith, that is, our Christian brethren.

Boast Only in the Lord (11-18)

Paul now
makes things personal as he comes to the very end of the letter to the
Galatians. Paul has apparently been using a secretary to write the letter as he
dictated it to him, but now he grabs the pen and writes the last paragraph
himself. He reiterates the fact that the Judaizers, the false teachers, were
only wanting the Galatians to be circumcised. Why? They wanted the Galatians
circumcised for two reasons. First, so that they would not be persecuted
because of the offensiveness of the cross of Christ, and, second, so that they
could boast in their number of law-abiding disciples. How does Paul respond? He
says, “God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus
Christ.” If any boasting is going to be done, it is boasting only in the Lord.
The cross is our atonement, renewal, and salvation. If you are in Christ, then
circumcision or non-circumcision means anything. Why? Because we are a new
creation. We have died to the world. We have died to the Law. We have died to
the flesh, our old person. We are new in Christ.

Verse 16
says, “And as many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy be upon
them, and upon the Israel of God.” What rule is he referring to? The word
“rule” refers to a standard, a principle, and a philosophy. In this context,
the apostle must be referring to the “new creation” idea. Of course, this is a
“big idea” (Moo). The old age is marked by wickedness, sin, the flesh,
circumcision, and the Law while the new age is inaugurated by the cross of
Christ and the things associated with Him such as the Spirit, faith, and love.
Those who are new creatures, operating in the new creation will experience the
peace and mercy of God as the new Israel. Christians are the chosen people. We
are those who experience the blessings of God. We are the ones who will inherit
His kingdom and all His promises.

Paul no
longer wants the agitators to trouble him, and he no longer wants the Galatians
to listen and follow their heresies. Paul must have had several scars that he
attained from persecutions from various rivals to the cross of Christ. He
reckoned those scars to be the marks of the Lord Jesus in his body. There was
no question of Paul’s loyalty. His allegiance was with Christ.

Paul ends
the epistle the same way he started it (1:3) “Grace to you and peace from God
the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ” and (6:18) “Brethren, the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.” If there is anything that the
Galatians needed it was the grace of Christ with their spirit. They needed to
know it, and they needed to trust it. There is no justification before God or
satisfaction in this life or the next without the grace and peace of God.

Conclusion and Christian Application

In Galatians
6, we have a list of Paul’s final exhortations. Like a machine-gun, he fires
numerous direct applications.

(1) Gently restore sinning believers.

(2) Bear one another’s burdens.

(3) Examine yourself and come to an
accurate self-image.

(4) Support your true, Gospel ministers.

(5) Do good to all, especially other
Christians.

(6) Boast only in the Lord and His
cross.

(7) Walk (live) according to the
standard of the new creation.

(8) Do not trouble your spiritual
overseers by following false teachers.

Paul has previously
affirmed in Romans that his Gospel is taught by the Law and the Prophets
(3:21). He then asserted that his teaching on faith establishes the Law (3:31).
Now he personifies this teaching by using Abraham as his supreme model and a
glance at David. Abraham is in the books of the Law, but chronologically came
before the Law. David is also referred to in vv6-8, and now the three divisions
of the Hebrew Bible have been represented: the Law, the Prophets, and the
Writings. Thus Paul is demonstrating that the entire Old Testament, the “Scriptures,”
teaches that righteousness is accounted by faith and not by works.

Why
reference Abraham at this point in the flow of the argument?

1. The Jews
considered Abraham to be the founder of the race and the representation of
everything that a godly man should be.

2. Despite
Jews thinking that this Gospel contradicted everything they knew, it is
actually as old as the Jewish faith. This is the basis of Jewish religion.

3. The
teaching on faith is now personified in a major religious figure.

4. Paul has
sought to explain that righteousness comes apart from Law and works. There is
no better way to prove that point than by Abraham who was accepted by God some
430 years before Law.

Abraham, the
father of Judaism, was not accepted by God because of the works he had
accomplished. He had nothing to boast of before God. And that verse supports my
definition of works as “anything that one would place before God in order to be
accepted by Him.” There is no human on this earth or in history that can boast
before God, not even Abraham. Abraham found that his believing God was
accounted to him for righteousness (Genesis 15:6).

If we truly worked
to “earn” right standing before God, then God would owe us something. But when
there is nothing we can do before God, and He justifies us anyway, then it is
called grace. The Christian life is created and continued by grace. We deserve
nothing but death, yet God in Christ has called us, justified us, adopted us,
is sanctifying us, and will glorify us.

Abraham
found these things to be true and so did David. David understood that
righteousness was attainable through repentance and faith (of course if you are
repentant then you must believe). David believed that when he confessed his
transgressions to the Lord he was forgiven (Psalm 32).

Pastors and
churches all across America have been attempting to diagnose the culture. They
want to watch the trends and the various forms of media in order to see how
they may either accommodate the culture or battle the culture. Yet, a passage
like we find in Galatians five today is fundamental to understanding ourselves
and the culture. We need to focus on our spiritual battle before we can take on
the culture.

READ Scripture- This is the Word of God

The Command (16)

Verse 16 is
a clear command to walk in the Spirit. In the NT, to “walk” means to live. It
refers to a lifestyle commitment. Do we all sin? I believe so. I do not think
anyone attains perfection in this age. We are only made completely perfect when
Christ returns and we are glorified. So, we all sin from time to time and must
ask forgiveness for it, but that does not mean that we live in our sins. The
danger is found in a lifestyle of
sin. The apostle says to, “Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the
lust of the flesh.” A person walks in either of two categories: the Spirit or
the flesh. To walk in the Spirit is to submit to the will of God, obey His
commands, pursue righteousness, and be changed from the inside-out. The Spirit
has been sent forth from the Father and Son to indwell all Christians. He has
come into our lives in order to regenerate us, that is, give us new birth and
to put to death the deeds of the flesh, that is, to progressively make us holy.
The Spirit longs for us to bear witness to Christ, and He enables us to live a
life worthy of the calling we have in Christ Jesus.

The “flesh,”
on the other hand, refers to the unredeemed nature. It is what has been called
the Adamic nature, the sin nature, the unregenerated nature, and more. Thus,
the “flesh” does not only refer to physical sins, but it refers to all those
things apart from Christ. The apostle says that if a person walks in the Spirit
he/she will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh.

The Conflict (17-18)

How is it
that walking in the Spirit keeps a person from fulfilling the lusts of the
flesh? These two are in conflict with one another. You cannot walk in both. You
either operate according to the Spirit or you operate according to the flesh. In
verse 17 we find the explanation for our inner struggles. Do you feel from time
to time that you are torn? Do you feel like you want to do what you know is
right, and yet you do the complete opposite? Do you know why you cannot do what
you want to do? It is because the flesh haunts you from the dead. Remember,
Paul has said in 2:20 what is true of all believers, “I have been crucified
with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. . . .” The old
“ego” is dead. The old “I” has been put away. Yet, the old you haunts you from
the grave so that Paul can say what he says in Rom 7:15-25 (turn there). Toward
the end of his life the apostle said in 1 Tim 1:15, “This is a faithful saying
and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save
sinners, of whom I am chief.”

You see,
there is within us two agents operating, the Spirit and the flesh. These two
are constantly battling it out inside us. This is the great Christian conflict.
What you want to do, you don’t do; and what you do not want to do is exactly
what you actually do. This is a frustrating thing, but it is the Christian
life. Slowly but surely, we are conquering the lusts of the flesh. Day by day,
we are suppressing the flesh so that one day we will have ultimate victory over
it. This is the process of maturity. Do we attain sinlessness in this life? As
I have already said, I do not believe so. Yet, I do believe that we can reach a
certain level of Christian maturity when we do not sin very often or
grievously. We can master the flesh to a certain extent in this life and that
should be our goal. The problem is that so many Christians are not at war with
the Adamic nature. We have to stop submitting to sinful and selfish desires and
go to battle with those things. Do not let the sinful nature master you.

The last
point that Paul wants to make before turning to the contrasts between the
Spirit and flesh comes in verse 18. He says that those who are led by the
Spirit are not under the Law. Why is that? Is the Law not necessary to keep the
Christian in check? We do not need the Law because the Holy Spirit is our
guide. He is the one who convicts us of sin, righteousness, and judgment. We do
not need some external Law because we have the Spirit of God leading us
internally to do those things which are right, good, and holy.

The Consequences of the Flesh (19-21)

We are
obviously not free to fulfill the lusts of the flesh. Verses 19-21 give a
lengthy list of the works of the flesh and conclude with “those who practice
such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” The flesh can only produce
things that do not lead us into the kingdom of God. What I see is that this list
is the product of self-reliance. Those are truly our works whether we are
“winging it” all through life or submitting to the Mosaic Law. The Law only
makes these things known and condemns them with no remedy. There are at least
four categories of sins here, those things pertaining to: sexual sins,
religious sins, and also sins of culture and alcohol. Of course, this list of
sins is not exhaustive, so he ends by saying “and the like.” If someone
practices these things, that is, if they think that these things are
acceptable, if they do not repent of such things, if they walk in these things,
if any of these things become a lifestyle, then that person will not inherit
the kingdom of God.

The Consequences of the Spirit (22-26)

In contrast,
the Spirit produces all things that lead to life, namely love. The contrast
here is between “works of the flesh” in v19 and “fruit of the Spirit” in v22.
Two lists are given. The second list is the product of the Spirit working in
us. These things are not by our doing. The fruit of the Spirit is singular
which means that there is one fruit that the Spirit seeks to develop in us. So,
the fruit of the Spirit is what? Love! “All of the other virtues listed result
in some manner from love” (Longnecker). Now there is no doubt that love and the
rest come by the working of the Spirit in us, but do not discount the
individual responsibility each of us has. V25 says, “If we live in the Spirit,
let us also walk in the Spirit” or as the NIV says, “let us keep in step with
the Spirit.” V26 is a final plea against Judaizer behavior in the church. If
the Spirit is working then the things of the flesh will deteriorate, but if the
things of the flesh persist then the church will deteriorate.

Conclusion and Christian Application

“1. I am not
what I ought to be. Ah! how imperfect and deficient. 2. Not what I might be,
considering my privileges and opportunities. 3. Not what I wish to be. God, who
knows my heart, knows I wish to be like him. 4. I am not what I hope to be; ere
long to drop this clay tabernacle, to be like him and see him as He is. 5. Not
what I once was, a child of sin, and slave of the devil. Though not all these,
not what I ought to be, not what I might be, not what I wish or hope to be, and
not what I once was, I think I can truly say with the apostle, ‘By the grace of
God I am what I am.’” --John Newton, Based on the words of 1 Cor 15:10, (Quoted
from Letters by the Rev. John Newton, authored by Josiah Bull, p. 400).

We are not
yet perfect, but we no longer operate in the flesh. Slowly but surely we are
pressing on in the Spirit toward holiness.

In May of
2014 we posted an article concerning the value of studying the Bible together.
There is a critical need for good teaching and preaching in the church today,
and folks do not need to neglect the assembling of themselves together.
Hopefully you were encouraged in that article to be more intent on getting to
church gatherings where the people of God gather around the word of God. If you
have not read that article, please go back and do so. If you did read it but
need to be refreshed on the subject, please go back and read it again. I am
absolutely convinced of the need for the church to study the Scriptures
together. Music is good, singing is encouraging, worship is necessary, prayers
should be offered, the Lord’s Supper should be celebrated, meals ought to be
shared, fellowship is needed, but none of those things are worthwhile if they
are not flowing out of a clear and convincing understanding of God’s word. The
Bible informs us of all these wonderful things.

In Part 1 of
this discussion we did a little math and concluded that if we were to spend
three hours in the corporate assembly each week setting our minds on the things
of Christ, then we only have three hours to combat the remaining 109 waking
hours of the week that we spend in the “world” with all of its struggles. I
would hope that you would take advantage of those three hours per week and make
the most of them that you can. Come to church gatherings prepared to engage
with the Lord, His word, and His people. I would also recommend that you take
advantage of what the Lord has made available to us today for personal Bible
study.

We have been
blessed beyond the wildest dreams of those from yesteryear. Bibles are
affordable and prevalent. They are all around us. We have superb English translations
and all sorts of tools to use to understand the Bible’s meaning. In the homes
of most Christians, and even the homes of many unbelievers, there are numerous
Bibles. Personally, I have about 20 different Bibles in my office; some are
leatherbound and others hardback, there are several different translations, and
there are several different study Bibles. Of course, I do not even open many of
those Bibles anymore because almost all of them are offered online for free at
places like www.biblegateway.com. There are even several different study tools
and commentaries available online for free. Honestly, there is no excuse for Christians
to not read and study the Bible.

I am
convinced from reading the Scriptures themselves that God has always wanted His
people to hear, read, understand, and meditate on His revealed word. God is a
personal God and has wanted to make Himself known. To do so, he has raised up
prophets and apostles to speak and write His holy word. So, Moses says, “Set
your hearts on all the words. . . . For it is not a futile thing for you,
because it is your life” (Deuteronomy 32). The psalmist also says, “Blessed is
the man . . . [whose] delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he
meditates day and night” (Psalm 1). “Law” there means “instruction.” The Lord
Jesus Himself even quoted Moses saying, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but
by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4). Finally, let me
add the apostle Paul’s famous statement about the importance of Scripture, “All
Scripture is given by inspiration of God [or “God-breathed”], and is profitable
for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
(2 Timothy 3). The Bible is useful for all sorts of things. For the Christian,
it is our life and salvation.

While the
saints of ancient times and many around the world today did/do not have Bibles
in their hands, they were intent on hearing, learning, and memorizing it so
that they could live it. If they could put forth that much effort, we should at
the very least be willing to read the Scriptures outside of the church. We can
and probably should read the Scriptures in the morning, during our lunch break,
with our families in the evenings, and before we lay our heads down to sleep.
There are all sorts of ways to go about personal Bible study. You can read
through certain books of the Bible, or you could read a brief passage in the
morning and meditate on it throughout the day. If you don’t know where to
start, why don’t you take the sermon text from the previous Sunday and read it
again, think about it, and pray about it?

Spending personal time in
God’s word outside of church gatherings is beneficial to your Christian growth.
It will encourage you, strengthen you, protect you, and motivate you.
Christians know from the inner-witness of the Holy Spirit that we should be in
the word. The prophets, psalmists, apostles, and the Lord Jesus Himself have
made it clear that believers should hear, study, and meditate on the
Scriptures. Lastly, there is no excuse for neglecting personal and family
devotions because of the resources that the Lord has made available today
through print and internet.

Independence
Day, or July 4th, is the holiday that marks our adoption of the
document commonly referred to as the Declaration of Independence. That document
announced our freedom from the control of Great Britain and declared our
independence as a newly formed nation, the United States of America. We all
have been born into that freedom, by no triumph of our own. Of course, many
have had to fight to secure and defend our freedom. To them we are grateful.
Now, can you imagine abandoning our freedom? Can you imagine yourself desiring
dictatorship, communism, or any of the like? We would be fools to want
something other than American freedom. We are willing to go to war to defend
our freedom and send our children to fight. At any hint of losing even a small
liberty, Americans are up in arms about it. We are right to enjoy our freedoms
and passionately defend them.

What a
fitting illustration it is to consider losing our American liberties, even on
this Independence weekend, but especially as we continue our study in
Galatians. Let me say losing our American freedoms is nothing compared to
losing our freedom in Christ. We are talking about atonement for sin, a
relationship with the Creator, and our eternal destiny. Thus, it is astounding
that the Galatians were leaving the Gospel, they were leaving freedom in Christ
in order to bear the burden of the Law. They were too easily persuaded.

READ Scripture- This is the Word of God

Stand in Liberty (1-4)

Notice the
contrast in verse one between standing and entanglement. This is a wonderful
picture in itself for what Christ has done for us. The word “entangled” in the
NKJV also means, “to experience constraint, be subject to, be loaded down with”
(BDAG). So, the Law is a burden that loads us down. It is a bondage that
constrains us. What is the burden? It is the guilt of our sin. How are we
constrain? The Law offers no true atonement. You can picture an animal like an
ox with a yoke on its neck in order to carry a heavy load or a man with a very
heavy load on his shoulders that stoops him over. One of the hardest things I
have done is work as a laborer to roof a house. Putting a load of shingles on
your shoulders and heading up a ladder is an exhausting and painful thing. It
is hard to stand up straight for a few days. In contrast, the freedom that
Christ gives us allows for the man or woman of God to stand up straight. For
the Christian, there is no heavy yoke. There is no burden to stoop us over.
Spiritually speaking, we can stand up straight. What is Paul’s point with this
contrast? He says, Stand up straight and
enjoy it; don’t go back to the exhausting and painful burden. The Christian
life is not just about standing up for Jesus as the hymn says, but it is
standing up because of Jesus, because of the freedom He has given us.

Beginning in
verse two, we get to some specifics. The false teachers were persuading the
Galatian Christians to become circumcised. Paul makes it personal by stating
his name in this plea. Circumcision was only a surgical procedure for the men,
but it was a mark of the covenant. The symbolism of that act had huge
significance. Paul says that if the Galatians were to submit to circumcision,
which is to say, if they were to submit to the Mosaic Law as a means of
righteousness then: (1) Christ would profit them nothing, (2) they must keep
the whole law, (3) they would be estranged from Christ, and (4) they will fall
from grace. Paul says, Mark my words
these will be your consequences. If you look to the law or rules or traditions
of men for right standing with God, you forfeit what you have in Christ. There
is no Christ plus anything. There is no faith plus something else. Salvation is
by grace through faith in Christ.

Faith Working through Love (5-6)

Paul has
been speaking of those who either have or were considering or will follow the
false teachers back into bondage. He has said, “You. . .You. . .You.” Now, in
verses five and six he turns to the true believers and uses, “We.” What is it
that true believers, those of the apostolic community, do for righteousness? We
do not work; we wait. We wait in faith for the full benefits of
Christ’s accomplishments. We do this through the Spirit meaning that we submit
to the authority and work of the Holy Spirit of God rather than the Law. We
constantly submit to the preferences of the Spirit, continually trusting in
Christ. In the morning, we trust. In the evening, we trust. When we are young,
we trust. When we are old, we trust. On the bad days, we trust. On the good
days, we trust. We live our lives by faith. We stand up straight in freedom,
and we wait for all of the promises of God in Christ to be fulfilled.

Verse six
gives an overarching principle: whether you have or don’t have the outward sign
of circumcision, it does not matter. The only things that matters is faith
working through love. Therefore, the Christian life does have fruit. There are
things to do in love. Yet, those things are not what justifies us before God.
Loving deeds are not what save us. We stand in love because of the freedom we
have been given. We continue by faith and working love because Christ has
already purchased our salvation and His righteousness has been imputed to us.
Faith makes love for our brethren and neighbors possible.

Leavening the Lump (7-12)

Paul knew
that the Galatians had started off well. He had proclaimed the Gospel in their
towns and established the churches in the grace of God. They had been trusting
in Christ. They were running the race of faith well, but someone threw a high
hurdle onto the track which tripped up many of them. The truth is what
believers must search for and submit to. The Galatians were convinced that what
Paul proclaimed was the truth, that is, the Gospel of Christ crucified and
raised again. Now they were not obeying that message, and Paul says that new opinion
did not come from God.

In the midst
of pulling the Galatians back into freedom with great encouragements, Paul
makes some sharp jabs at the agitators. Yeast was a symbol of sin in the Jewish
culture. Here, Paul uses it of the false teachers. It was and is common
knowledge that only a small bit of yeast spreads through the whole lump of
dough. In the same way, it only took a little persuasion away from the truth,
only a hint of doubt, to ruin the whole Galatian community. Of course, Paul
wants the Galatians to have the same view of the Judaizers that he has of them.
He wants them to have “no other mind.” I can tell you that the person who
causes unity in the church to be disrupted will certainly endure the judgment
of God. The Lord does not take lightly those who disturb the church. This is a
serious matter.

Verse eleven
is an oddly placed verse, but a subject that Paul feels he must address, and
there is no better time than now. Apparently some of the Judaizers were
claiming that Paul still taught circumcision. This must have been a ploy to
help persuade the Galatians to follow their teachings. Paul states emphatically
that this claim is utterly false. If it were true, why was he being persecuted
so violently? Paul proclaimed Christ crucified, the cross as salvation.
Circumcision and the proclamation of the Judaizers takes the offense of the
cross away. What is the offense of the cross? You have sinned against God
Almighty and cannot save yourself from His wrath, but Christ’s sacrifice is a
means of righteousness and salvation if only you will believe in Him and
receive His benefits. In an outburst of passion, frustration, and defense of
the Gospel, Paul says in verse twelve what may make some blush, “I could wish
that those who trouble you would even cut themselves off!” The NIV is even more
vivid, “As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and
emasculate themselves!” Paul plays off of their insistence on circumcision–why
not cut it all off?

Through Love Serve One Another (13-15)

In the last
paragraph of our sermon text today, Paul brings it back home to the situation
of the true believers, the brethren. He says, “You have been called to
liberty.” Yet, this freedom is not something of which we should take advantage.
Far be it from us to take for granted what Christ has done for us by continuing
in sin. The word “flesh” often refers to the unredeemed, sinful nature. So
many, too many Christians in America have devalued the grace of God in
Christ. If you continue is sin, you take His name through the mud of this
world. You should take this Christian liberty as an opportunity to serve others
in love. Paul teaches exactly what the Lord Jesus taught during His ministry.
If you want to fulfill the whole law, then fulfill Lev 19:18 which sums up the
whole.

The opposite
of love is stated in verse 15. Paul has probably heard that the Galatians were
“biting and devouring” one another over this issue. The way to repair
relationships and the health of the church is to reject the false teachers, continue
to trust in Christ, and lovingly serve one another. When there is infighting,
the health and witness of the church is in danger (Fee/Moo).

Conclusion and Christian Application

(1) Biting and devouring one another is
destructive to all involved and all those associated with the situation.

(2) Paul instructs Christians to stand
up straight, unencumbered, unburdened, and without constraint in liberty and
love. This is our privilege. This is part of the benefits of the Christian
life. We are free from the burden of sin’s guilt. We should use this freedom to
serve others in love, especially one another.

(3) If you turn to anything other than Christ for righteousness,
then you lose Christ. Salvation and a relationship with God is Fath + Nothing.
You forfeit your identity, status, and life as a Christian if you add anything
to Christ.